How Sesame Street makes money: HBO helped the kids' show recover when it was losing $11 million a year

The Hollywood Reporter

A deal between HBO and Sesame Workshop had to be struck in order for Sesame Street to survive. "It was one of the toughest decisions we ever made," says Steve Youngwood, Sesame Workshop's COO. Now, four years after the deal with HBO, Sesame Workshop is thriving with operating costs of $100 million a year. According to Marisa Guthrie, "Nobody is saying how much HBO is paying to license the show or for the rights to stream 150 hours of its nearly 5,000-episode back library — when Sesame Street had first-run episodes on public airwaves, PBS was forking over about $4 million annually — but these days distribution fees and royalties make up the biggest source of revenue: $52.9 million in 2018. Donations — about 31 percent of the Workshop's income — came close behind, bringing in $47.8 million last year. There have also been some recent block grants, like the Lego Foundation's $100 million donation, although that money is earmarked entirely for a Sesame Street project to help children affected by the Rohingya and Syrian refugee crises. Licensing revenue, including toys, games and clothing, came in at $34.5 million."

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